Sin City

Copyright Copyright © 2023 Nicole Waterhouse All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Development Editor / Editor: Nicolette Beebe Proofreader: Thatburnettebookworm Cover Designer: K.B Barrett Designs Contents ALSO BY Dedication Trigger Warnings 1. One 2. Two 3. Three 4. Four 5. Five 6. Six 7. Seven 8. Eight 9. Nine 10. Ten 11. Eleven 12. Twelve 13. Thirteen 14. Fourteen 15. Fifteen 16. Sixteen 17. Seventeen 18. Eighteen 19. Nineteen 20. Twenty 21. Twenty-one 22. Twenty-Two 23. Twenty-Three 24. Epilogue Acknowledgements Prologue SIGN UP FOR MY NEWSLETTER Follow me About the Author ALSO BY NICOLE WATERHOUSE STANDLONES: SLAMMED INTO INFERNO SIN CITY BAY NIGHT SERIES: ALWAYS BEEN YOU BACK TO YOU (Coming 2024) UNTIL YOU (Coming Soon) MAKE YOU MINE (Coming Soon) Dedication This is for all the girls who think their body is not beautiful or that they do not fit in, I see you. This is for you. You are beautiful, sexy and a total smoke show. Shoot your shot ladies! XO Trigger Warnings Please be advise that this story talks about alcohol abuse, drunk driving that results in death as well as (a traumatizing) miscarriage. One Aria Here I am, a thirty-year-old, newly divorced woman drinking my third bottle of wine while dancing around my condo in my cheeky underwear, wearing my baggie “Biggie Smalls” t-shirt and listening to Beyonce, “Irreplaceable”. I am singing at the top of my lungs at five in the evening on a Wednesday. My divorce was finalized today after a yearlong battle. I am a free woman. A seven-year rocky marriage and three years of dating down the drain. Though the intoxication was coursing through my veins, I could still hear him in the depths of my mind. “You fucking fat bitch! You want a fucking divorce? I will make your life a living hell because I will not give you a fucking cent. I cannot be seen with someone like you. A fat pig who does not know how to please her husband or take care of herself. I mean you could not even carry our damn baby because you are so fat and overweight.” Being on the larger side for a woman, I never let my body size define me. I have always embraced my curves. Yes, I have a big ass that jiggles when I walk. I have wide hips and thick thighs that have an obsession with one another. My waist is not tiny, but not too wide either. My breasts are all natural, full and big. I loved my body, but his words hurt. They cut me deep, deep into my soul, but I would not let him see how his words affected me. I kick myself even now for not thinking of something better to spit back, but even in my mind today, I still answer with what I said all those months ago. “Okay. Hope you at least wore a condom with Kimberly because she seems like the type that would sleep with almost everyone in the office.” I do not need a man to define me. Or a marriage to define me as a woman. I am entering my screw men era and I don’t care what anyone has to say about it either. This is about me finding myself and who Aria is. And right now, I’m finding out that I love drinking wine on a Wednesday afternoon and dancing like no one is watching me or judging me. I go to meet with my four best friends Hope, Hayley, Quinn and Caroline at our favorite bar that serves the best margaritas in Seattle. A night with my girls is exactly what I need to celebrate my recent freedom from the Was-Band. I arrive late to the bar because my client was talking my ear off about the property that they just put an offer in on. Must be nice to wire two point two million dollars on a building of your choosing. The Seattle Commercial Real Estate market is fast paced and competitive. There have been countless times where I have had to pull something out of my (fat) ass to make a deal happen, and this deal looks like it might be one. This one I might have to get creative on. However, I need to take a step back and recharge before I tackle it. Let’s be honest, I will most likely get an idea while having drinks with my girls, and I’ll have this deal done by tomorrow evening. Hope has a margarita in front of her and is ordering a round of shots. Hayley is flirting with the waiter. Quinn is laughing at something Hope just said, and Caroline is most likely texting her boyfriend––excuse me, fiancé. Approaching the table, I hear Hope ask Hayley, “How can you juggle dating four different guys? I can barely handle the one I am dating currently. But four? Fuck.” Hayley flips her long blonde hair behind her dainty shoulder and rolls her green eyes. “Hey, I am upfront and honest when they ask me out. I tell them that I am not interested in settling down. I like to have fun, and I date more than one person. This way, it saves me from getting my heart broken or any feelings involved. Been there and done that. No thanks. This way everyone knows what’s up.” Hope blinks at Hayley. “I swear sometimes you are a man in a hot-as-fuck woman’s body.” Pulling out my chair, I hang my purse on the corner of the backrest. They all smile at me and say, loudly, “Ding Dong the Small Dick is Gone!” I cannot help but laugh and bow like an idiot. Though, it is true. The small dick is gone. Boy, bye. I grab the shot